Friday, October 30, 2015

Nature Study Outing :: Bark Study

By

This week was one of our scheduled "tree study" days, the week of the month when our weekly nature study group does a slightly more formal observation-and-drawing session together.  This month our focus was bark.

It was a very simple session planned by my friend: we started with a grid-drawing exercise, and then set up grids on the six trees themselves.  Everyone took their journals around to each tree to sketch the square of bark exposed into squares on their page.

 



Drawing the bark from those little boxes rather than from the whole tree made it much more focused and successful an observation.  The kids mentioned several times how--apart from the always-conspicuous sycamore bark--they had never noticed the great differences in color and texture.

Cate's completed grid

And then, of course, the kids got distracted by fort building, cottony insect egg saks, horse chestnuts falling from the uppermost branches, and coots calling!
at
Labels: ,

13 comments:

  1. AnonymousOctober 30, 2015 at 7:28 PM

    What a blessing you are to your kids to take them on adventures that they will never forget!! God bless you on your homeschool endeavor!

    ReplyDelete
  2. DawnOctober 31, 2015 at 3:19 AM

    Oh, MY, this is incredible, Celeste!! Our local community just worked on bark rubbings this week, but this?? I already forwarded it on to the other families involved and we are very excited to implement this magnificent activity!

    White's audio of Charlotte Web is a family fave, as is his Trumpeter of the Swan. My 8 year old just started Charlotte again earlier this week during his Quiet Times.

    We're finishing Robin Hood, Brighty of the Grand Canyon and A Wonder Book as Y2 wraps up in our home as read alouds. My newly turned 8 year old is enjoying Freddie the Detective books by Walter Brooks alternating with several I Survived....books by Lauren Tarshis. His description of I Survived the Battle of Gettysburg was exciting to listen to as he animatedly described and dramatized several events from the story, capping it off with his favorite tidbit - that it was a book that stopped a bullet shot at a main character and prevented him from being killed during said battle. My 5 year old is currently obsessed with a series called Who Pooped in the Park? I'm finishing up Ivanhoe and Galileo's Daughter, about a third of the way through Jayber Crow for the second time, and trying to finish The Hobbit as I had a lofty goal on completing the entire Lord of the Rings series this year and am only halfway finished with its prequel:(.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. CelesteNovember 5, 2015 at 4:51 PM

      I will have to get Trumpeter of the Swan very soon--my 6yo finished Charlotte's Web yesterday and is itching for more White. The Big Kids have read all of his, I think, but this is her first go-round. And she LOVES audiobooks.

      My kids loved the Freddy the Detective books. If I remember right, there are 26 books in the series--when I discovered our library's collection, it was like I *finally* found something that could keep them occupied with new reading material for more than a couple weeks. ;)

      I had to return Jayber Crow to the library *again,* so it's back on the back burner. Hoping to finish it by the end of the year...maybe!

      Delete
    2. DawnNovember 5, 2015 at 5:00 PM

      26??? Our library only has two or three. I found a few more inexpensively on Amazon but now I have to search even deeper! Thanks?:)

      Delete
    3. CelesteNovember 5, 2015 at 5:01 PM

      Hahaha! Yeah, I read all of ONE, but the kids got through a bunch thanks to that extensive library collection.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddy_the_Pig

      You're welcome! ;)

      Delete
  3. AnonymousOctober 31, 2015 at 1:04 PM

    (Off topic but) can you post about favorite baby/toddler products and gear? Also carriers if you use them?

    ReplyDelete
  4. AmberOctober 31, 2015 at 2:30 PM

    What a great idea! I love how that helps kids to focus in on just a little bit of the bark and allows them to compare the differences in the barks more easily. I will definitely have to do this with my kiddos!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. CelesteNovember 5, 2015 at 4:41 PM

      It is just so easy to set up and do--I was pleased with how well it went for my kids. Great option for when you need to inject a little novelty into your journaling without having a bunch of time to plan it in. ;)

      Delete
  5. Tully FamilyNovember 1, 2015 at 4:52 AM

    This is a wonderful idea!!! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownNovember 6, 2015 at 7:36 PM

    I absolutely love how you guys drew the bark! :) Very cool!

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)